General managers get an identity based on their tendencies. Peter Chiarelli is known for lopsided trades, Stan Bowman for re-acquiring familiar faces, David Poile for team-savvy contracts and Steve Yzerman (and now Julien BriseBois) for finding skill no matter a player’s draft ranking or size.

In New York, the Rangers’ identity is still closely linked to their last general manager and current president Glen Sather. But this is Jeff Gorton’s team now and it has been since he was promoted from assistant to general manager in July 2015. While he may not have an identity that defines his tenure yet, he is developing tendencies, some of which were reinforced as recently as the 2019 trade deadline.

Gorton plays the most pivotal role in the Rangers’ rebuild. For even acknowledging the need for a rebuild, instead of trying to bandaid the team’s weaknesses with right-now moves that only deepened the hole they created for themselves, he set himself apart from his...